Iron and Railway Museum
The Iron and Railway Museum ( Musée du fer et du chemin de fer ) in Vallorbe deals with the history of the regionally important iron industry and railway. Because of its tradition of iron processing, Vallorbe is also called “Cité du Fer” (Eisenstadt).
History and location
The museum, founded in 1980, is housed in buildings in the "Les Grandes Forges" district, in which iron has been processed without interruption since 1495. The buildings are located on a canal of the Orbe , which drives four water wheels. One of these water wheels still drives the equipment in the forge, which is operated as part of the museum.
exhibition
On four levels, on the one hand, the history of Vallorbe as a train station on the Milan - Paris route , the development of the railways in the region and various models and model railway systems are shown, on the other hand the history of iron production in general and in the region.
Iron museum
This part of the museum shows, on the one hand, iron production from the early days to the present day, and, on the other hand, local evidence from the 13th century to display cases from today's precision mechanics and watchmaking companies in the region. It also has a historic nail and farrier's shop, which was in operation from 1693 to the end of the 20th century, as well as the village blacksmith's shop operated by the museum.
Railway Museum
A model in H0 shows the Vallorbe train station from 1908. A slide show tells the story of the train in Vallorbe and the Milan - Paris route. On a 0 layout, the visitor can select different train formations that have been running in Vallorbe since 1870 - from steam trains to TGVs . These then drive on a circuit through the exhibition space. In the other exhibition typical objects of the railway as a be Zugskupplung "Milan - Paris», cardboard tickets, station bells, Zugschilder to a functioning jukebox shown. Another railway model in H0 can be put into operation for a fee.
Web links
Coordinates: 46 ° 42 ′ 44 " N , 6 ° 22 ′ 49" E ; CH1903: five hundred nineteen thousand and seventy-four / 174004